AfterLife Lessons
by Appaku
Summary: COMPLETE: Sequel to Life Lessons. Chiriko now has wisdom imparted on him from the Seiryuu warriors.
1. New Path

It's here, everyone! The sequel to "Life Lessons." If you haven't read that, I highly suggest you do. Yay for shameless plugs. Life Lessons focused more on Chiriko growing up with people he trusted, and stayed very true to the original series (right?). This is a completely different direction, though… it's going to be so weird for me to write this. xx I love the Seiryuu warriors and all, but it's still going to be weird. I'll still try my hardest to write a good story, so please give me encouragement!  
Also, this one isn't completely figured out, like LL was in the beginning. Some of them I already have plans for, but I'm open for suggestions for Ashitare, Soi, and Tomo right now. I have like… no ideas for them. At all.

My fellow warriors of Suzaku taught me many things before we left Konan. Chichiri taught me the value of companionship, Hotohori showed me the flaws in my attitude, Tamahome displayed how important it is to be thankful for your loved ones. Nuriko told me to reach for new heights, Tasuki reminded me not to worry so much. Miaka and I learned together not to give up, and Mitsukake reassured me that who I started this journey as was still important.

My intent for our journey, besides helping everyone find the Shinzaho and summon Suzaku, was to take all these lessons to heart and make them a part of me, and come back a stronger person. I did not intend to kill myself instead. But that was my fate, and the end of my short life.

I didn't die alone, though. Nuriko died well before I did, and Mitsukake and Hotohori followed me shortly. We were all present in Miaka's homeland as she finally managed to summon Suzaku and saved both of our worlds, but since then, we just continued to be dead spirits. I'm sure the others didn't want to die, either, but I'm especially upset that my life was taken from me before I could become that better person I was striving to be.

This was one of the days I came back to the place that I died to generally play the "sad ghost role". If only, if only I had my character at the time Miboshi, of the Seiryuu warriors, had taken my body from me. I know I could have beat him if I had it. But then again, maybe I was just too dependant on it.

Little did I expect another fallen warrior to visiting the same place today, to remember the summoning of Seiryuu. The former general of Kutou, and source of so much of our suffering, was just as surprised to see me there. Even without a physical body anymore, the mere pressure of his life force was enough to make me panic. I tried to run away, but Nakago merely laughed.

"What, little boy of Suzaku, do you think I'm going to do to you?" he asked.

I shook my head to show I didn't know and didn't want to think about it.

"We've both already died. It would be pointless to do anything."

Calming down, I noticed how right he was. He probably could still very well use his life force to harm those around him, but because I'm without a physical body, he wouldn't be able to hurt me. Nevermind, perhaps he still could, but I don't want to find out. "So then… you're not going to do anything?"

"Didn't I just say that?" he raised an eyebrow. "And here I thought you were the smart one of your group."

My shoulders slumped at that last comment. I was confident he wasn't going to do anything to hurt me, but I still didn't want to remain around him. "If you'll excuse me…"

"Where do you think you're going?" he said in a stern tone, which chills up what would be my spine, if I still had a body. "Don't you think it's rude to leave someone as you've just met? After all, you don't meet new people very often in the afterlife."

I probably had no obligation to stay, but since he put it that way, I did. My mother always did lecture me on manners, though in this situation, she'd probably have told me to run away. However, I'm dead. There's no reason for me to be cautious anymore.

"I really never met you while I was alive," I told him. "In fact, I only saw a few of the Seiryuu warriors, and it was usually very brief."

"I seem to be much more acquainted with your former comrades, then," his eerie little smile stayed on his face. "I saw Nuriko and Mitsukake briefly, and met your emperor for only a few minutes before he met his demise. I never did meet you while you were alive."

I grimaced. He killed Mitsukake and Hotohori, and here he mentioned them so casually. The general took notice of my expression. "You seem to be quite the angry youth."

Angry youth? I have every reason to be angry, especially at this man. He didn't seem to mind, and simply brushed his hair out of his face. It was hard not to notice such flashy locks, since they were very rare in either of our countries. As I recall, there was a tribe many years ago with his traits, but they died out long before I was even born.

"Speaking of them, where are your fellow warriors?" he asked me. He only seemed curious, but I was still apprehensive about answering him.

"Scattered around. There's no rule saying we always have to stay together on Mt. Taikyoku," I replied. "And what about the Seiryuu warriors?"

"The same. But my life force is still strong enough that I can sense where they are."

I can't even imagine life force as powerful as that. I was one of the stronger ones in our group at sensing Miaka's chi, but nothing like him.

"Since we have nothing else to do for the rest of time, would you like to meet the other Seiryuu warriors?" he asked, but seemed unable to wipe the sly smirk off his face. Maybe it was stuck there.

"We don't have to wait forever, Nakago," I tried to change the subject from his offer. "We might be able to reincarnate someday, or we could just pass on."

"Then why haven't you passed on?" his blue eyes lined up with mine, pressing me for an answer I didn't have. "We are still celestial warriors, and are bound to stay ready to protect our priestess until they themselves are ready to pass on. That, and because of our destinies to fight until the very end, most of us probably aren't ready to pass on."

No wonder he was so good at manipulating people; everything he said was very enticing. "What do you mean by that?"

"Your Mitsukake is probably the only one ready to move on, provided he could. But the rest of us still have regrets, and our own problems to tie us down. Some," he eyed me carefully, "more than others."

"That's not really true…" I tried to interrupt, but I was trying to convince myself of that more than him.

"If one could just forget everything in the afterlife and be happy, they wouldn't have to come visit the place they died, now would they?"

How true. His logic pinned me just like it pinned everyone else. Nakago pressed the question again: "Do you want to meet the others?"

Without thinking it over, I found myself nodding in agreement, and followed him out of the rubble-filled monastery, which was still stained with my blood.


	2. Hope

I didn't expect the theme half-way through this, but it did. Oh well! It works better this way. This is the first time I've really written Suboshi, so it was rather difficult, and I got distracted singing to FY music instead… I'm sure he wasn't very happy with me. But he should be happy now that it's done. Also, as much as I'd love to write Chiriko and "Chiriko" stuff, it won't work in this setup, so there will be no Amiboshi chapter. I'm sorry. :x

In all my wildest dreams, I never imagined I'd be willingly following a mortal enemy to go meet his fellow deceased comrades. He didn't seem to find it all that strange. It was almost as if I was just another puppy following him home. He stopped abruptly, and looked around. Someone was sure to be close by.

"There you are," he said. "Come out here, why don't you?"

A boy barely older than me dropped swiftly out of a tree. His sudden entrance startled me, but I was more surprised by his appearance.

"What are you doing here with one of the Suzaku, Nakago?" he sneered, obviously displeased by my presence. Before Nakago could respond, I was already blurting out my observations.

"That's the boy who impersonated me!" I pointed. I only had a brief look at him back then, but there was a perfect resemblance. "Pleased to meet you, Amiboshi."

He snubbed my polite introduction by looking away. "I'm Suboshi. Amiboshi was my twin brother."

Nakago leaned down to my ear and expanded on that. "He was the evil twin of the two."

"I heard that perfectly, Nakago!" he yelled. It made more sense to me now that they were twins, since the other one, as I understand, had a much slower temper. "Now what is he doing here?"

"Spirits can go wherever they wish. It's not as if this is your personal territory," the calm general responded. "Seeing the Suzaku as our enemies now is obsolete. Behave yourself and give your guest a formal introduction."

Though he probably had no reason to obey Nakago now, he did (begrudgingly). "I'm Suboshi of the Seiryuu seven. And you must be Chiriko?"

"Ah, yes," I responded, a little flustered.

"I'll leave you two to yourselves," Nakago turned around. "I'll be back later."

"Wait, Nakago!" I called back after him. "You're just going to leave?"

"I do as I wish," he said, and faded off into the distance. Suboshi rolled his eyes and turned around to leave back for his spot in the tree.

"You're going to leave, too?" I shifted back to him.

"Why not? I do as I wish."

"But," I fretted, "I don't even know where I am!"

"This is still Sairou," he pulled himself back into the tree, and didn't bother looking back at me. I wondered what reason he would have for staying in Sairou. He didn't die in this country like I did, and was quite a ways away from where he watched Seiryuu be summoned. I stepped under the tree branch to look down on the small village he was watching. There wasn't anything of interest, except for Suboshi's mirror image working in he field, smiling all the while.

"Isn't that…?"

"Yes, that's my brother. Did you come to pester him for impersonating you?"

"No, no, of course not," I said. "It was partly my fault. I have no reason to blame him."

"Then why did you come?"

"I'm not sure of that myself."

A few more moments of silence passed, filled only by the laughs of the village people down below. Since Tasuki and Chichiri were able to see us in our spiritual forms, I figured Amiboshi would, too. Therefore, I was surprised when he turned his head to look up the hill towards the tree, and didn't seem to notice us at all. "Why didn't he see us?" I asked Suboshi curiously.

"He has no reason to, since he doesn't have any memory of either of us. Any of us, for that matter," he buried his chin in the nest of his arms. "And there's no reason to make him remember."

"Doesn't that make you upset? You're his twin brother, after all."

His eyebrows twitched as he got an uneasy smile. "I'd be lying if I said it doesn't. But I'd feel worse if he did."

"But what is he without his memories?" I got a little upset, since it seemed unethical to let him fool himself into another reality.

"Much happier, that's for sure. Besides, I've got enough memories last us both a lifetime."

It still didn't feel right, so I added more to my argument. "People need bad experiences in order to grow stronger, and ultimately it's because there are bad memories that the happy ones are so much better, right?"

"I'm sure in the back of his mind he's still scarred, if that's what you mean," he snapped back. "No amount of forgetfulness juice could probably erase the images of his whole village being killed around him!"

At this new tidbit of information, I immediately shut my mouth and looked the other way in embarrassment. It seemed to be the ice breaker for Suboshi though, as he continued speaking.

"My brother is getting the life we had both always dreamed off, and getting everything that was denied to us. Parents who treasure him, a quiet community, and no duty to destroy," he clentched the meteor ball he still had with him. "He doesn't have to become as evil as those who ruined our lives. No children to smite, no women to defile, no comrades to betray."

I never knew much about Suboshi besides his existence, but this gave me reason to believe he had commited all those acts he had listed. His voice started to waver as he held back tears and looked up at the sky. "I'm still so angry. I want to blame someone else that I have to suffer now, but it's really all my fault. It would be wrong of me to make him remember all of this with me. And that's something I'd never be able to forgive myself for."

I gulped hard, but I couldn't stop myself from crying, too. Life could be hard enough, but why did we have to carry so much of it with us? Why couldn't our Gods take mercy on us and let us forget all the hardship? Of course, that request directly contradicted what I had just been arguing about.

"You don't have to cry, too," he said with his previous attitude as he rubbed the little tears away from his eyes. "I was just saying I could take all the sadness myself."

"I'm sorry," I wiped my own tears. "So that's really all there is for you? No hope at all?"

"My brother's happiness is my hope. He has to be happy enough for the both of us. And no, that's not all. I died just when my priestess needed me most back in her homeland. I don't even know what became of her. Whether she found happiness again, or if she's still…" he trailed off.

"The priestess of Seiryuu?" I thought back to when Miaka summoned Suzaku. "As I understand…"

"You know what happened her?" he perked up and looked me straight in the face in anticipation. "Tell me! How is she? Is she alright?"

"A-as I understand, she was consumed by Seiryuu," I started, but his rapid change in expression mixed up my train of thought. "And something about her not having been raped, and making an enemy out of Nakago, and--"

"Yui!" his face was full of shock. "How could--"

"B-But Miaka rescued her with one of her wishes to Suzaku! And it's thanks to her, that she able to summon Suzaku at all… last I heard, she was fairing alright…"

He stayed silent for a moment to take everything in, and then sighed very long, and very slowly. "I don't know whether to hope you're right or not. But I guess I missed a lot more than I thought."

"I guess so," I laughed nervously. "I'm sorry I don't know all the details."

"No, as long as she's alright now," he smiled , but seemed very distanced from what he was saying. "Thanks for letting me know."

I beamed. A simple "thank you" from one of my former enemies was enough to bring my entire mood up. "So… it might be daring to ask, but… you and Amiboshi were the last ones left in your village, I take it?"

"Yes," he climbed out of the tree to sit next to me. "After that, we sort of raised each other, and learned to use our powers from Seiryuu to get revenge. It wasn't until later we found out we were celestial warriors."

"Then you taught yourselves how to fight when you were still very young."

"Yeah," he twirled one of the meteor balls as he spoke. "But we weren't very good at first. Brother used to scold me for hurting myself with these," he laughed a little, thinking back to it. "And every night that I'd start to have nightmares again, he'd have to play his flute to calm me down. He really babied me."

"That's hard to imagine," I laughed with him, and was pleased to hear he still had some fond memories. He carried on to tell me a few more of the things they would do together, and soon we heard a flute from down in the village. We quieted down to listen to it, such an uplifting tune. Miaka had sometimes mentioned how much she loved the way he played, and I understood now what she meant. A part of me wanted to be swept away in the sound, and to go play with him on a flute of my own.

Suboshi turned his head to me in surprise as I started making a shrill sound with a leaf whistle. After trying to match Amiboshi's tune for a few measures, I put it back into the palm of my hand to crumble it up. "Not the effect I wanted."

"I could never do that," he rested his head on his hand. "He'd get mad at me for spitting all over the leaves when he'd be playing."

"It's a hard skill to pick up," I contently let the leaf fall from my hand. I guess I wasn't the only one who wanted to be part of that joyful tune. It reminded me again how Suboshi wanted so much to join his happiness, but was unable to do that, too. Hopefully, he wouldn't be doomed to stay here watching over him all this time…

He didn't have to, it occurred to me. "Suboshi?"

"Yes?" he raised an eyebrow and dragged his attention away from the music again.

"If Amiboshi is happy here, and you know he'll happy here forever, why don't you go to your priestess?"

"To Yui?" he raised both eyebrows. "I'm dead. How would I…?"

"If your will is strong enough, perhaps you could find your way to her world again to watch over her. It worked for us when Miaka summoned Suzaku."

"If I could see Lady Yui again…" he looked back towards Amiboshi's village. The flute was hitting higher notes now, as if to tell him to go. He closed his eyes in thought, then stood up. "If I can, I have to try."

I stood up after him with a smile, and offered my hand out to him. "I wish you good luck."

He shook it, and turned looked back at the village one last time. "I'll be back for him," he said, and then disappeared. I felt proud to have helped him a little bit, and enjoyed the flute a little longer, praying for his happiness.

"Shouldn't you feel guilty, giving him false hope like that?" a deep voice came from behind me. The surroundings grew dark as I turned around to see Nakago.

"Why shouldn't he have hope?" I furrowed my eyebrows at him.

"The reason you were able to join your priestess at that time was because the physical presence of Tamahome and myself served as a medium between our worlds. It was also her will, and the help of your Taiitsukun, that enabled you to go to her. Suboshi doesn't have any of these resources."

"Nothing is impossible," he tried to sound confident. "I'm sure that if he strives for it, he'll be able to see her again."

"I'm not in the mood to argue," he closed his eyes. "Come, Tomo is waiting."


	3. Imagination

The first part of this looked like it could turn into a Shouta fic… I surprised myself. XD Don't worry, it didn't stay that way! This was a fun chapter to write. And again, any Soi & Ashitare ideas? On another quick note, I had this written up the day after I put up the first chapter, but the next day I got an eyeful of a motorcycle accident- it was a deep reminder of mortality. So th next chapters might spin back to the serious side.

Though he didn't start out as friendly, I much preferred Suboshi's company over Nakago's. Once again, he didn't look back at me, and was moving so quickly I had to struggle to keep up.

"Is this who you mentioned, Nakago?" a slithering voice came from in front of us, but I couldn't find a face to go with it.

"He knew I was coming?" I said, while still looking around for the voice's source.

"I asked earlier if he would like your company," he replied.

"And I was quite intrigued," a pair of lips appeared and said, and from behind them the figure of a face began to show. However, it was layered in stripes of makeup, so it took me by surprise. "Which one were you, little boy? Nuriko?"

"No, I'm Chiriko…"

"Chiriko," he lifted a hand with long finger nails to hold my chin and get a good look at my face, much to my discomfort. "What a pity to die so young," he licked his lips a little, which made me even more uncomfortable.

"Nakago?" I eyed him, pleadingly. It was stupid of me to think he would assist me.

"Chiriko, this is Tomo," he said, and didn't seem at all concerned that Tomo looked like he would eat me. "You met him in the desert, as I understand."

"Indeed you did," he let go and stood back a little. "Do you recognize me?"

I would have remembered the face makeup if I had seen it before, but I looked harder. The shape of his face… and his name… I had seen and heard them while we were in that illusion of the city. "You were… the waitress?"

"Waitress?" he laughed. "If that's how you'd like to remember me, then I won't argue."

"That's not what I meant!" I stepped back a little. I started wishing that I had never left with Nakago in the first place. I looked back at him again, and he had an interested expression.

"Enjoy yourselves. Once again, I'll be back later to collect you," he said and started to fade off into the distance again.

"Nakago!" I called his name and stretched my hand out after him. "Nakago, come back!"

A cackle interrupted my yelling and the bony hand rested on my shoulder. "How sweet, yelling for Nakago. Do you enjoy his company?"

"I didn't mean…" I tried to back away from him.

"I'm sure you'll learn to enjoy my company, too," he smiled widely and swung an arm around me to lead me off with him. I remembered those records of perverted men who would take children and do terrible things to them, and my imagination sailed in all different directions of what he could possibly intend to do with me.

To my surprise, he lead me into a large tent and had me sit down in the dark, and then left my side. I nervously looked around and felt for a way out, when lights turned on suddenly, and loud music began to fill the area. I looked back at the center of the tent, where an enormous animal lifted a young woman on to it's back, with what looked like it would be it's nose. It flapped it's wide ears, and reminded me that I had read about such an amazing creature back when I was younger. A "giraffe," was it?

In front of the "giraffe", there were children bending their bodies in almost inhuman ways. It looked intensely painful. Off in the corner, a few men had faces painted similar to Tomo's, and were clearing their voices. I couldn't make sense of it right away, so I began to assume Tomo had brought me to hell.

Speak of the devil, he appeared from behind me with a cackle. "I thought you would be impressed."

"What is this place?" I asked over the blaring music.

"You've never seen a circus?" he raised his eyebrows. "What a wasted childhood. It's my pleasure to make this your first one."

"A circus…?" I looked back at the action. "Then these are performers?"

"They certainly are, and they've gotten much better since I last saw them. You see that girl on the elephant? She was barely able to approach it when I was still performing here."

"Oh, an elephant," I looked back it, and the girl happily standing on top of it. "You were a performer here, Tomo?"

"I was one of the best performers here," he closed his eyes proudly.

"Did you use your illusions for it?"

"No, I can perform without the help of Seiryuu. I was a singer," he grew a very big, very content smile. He finally looked back at me with one eye. "You seem surprised."

"I am," I said with my eyes wide open.

"But when I left to go join Nakago, they replaced me with that little stub over there. Fools, thinking that being fat means you can hit lower notes."

"I see," I lied. "So this is where you've been since you died?"

"No, I've been in other places as well. I'm here today for you," he smiled widely at me again. My previous fears sparked back up.

"Why me?" I half asked him, half pleaded with the Gods about my situation.

"Because former enemy or not, you're a child," his voice grew stern. "And you're going to enjoy it. Understood?" Without thinking, I nodded that I understood. Gaining his smile again, Tomo continued. "People aren't taking children to enjoy the circus anymore, and I think that's the source of this world's problems."

"Source of this world's problems?" I raised an eyebrow, somewhat entertained by this idea.

"Yes. When I was a just a little boy and saw the circus for my first time. My eyes were opened and I was able to let my imagination awake. The people who burn down unfortunate villages were never able to imagine any other way to take care of their problems."

"You say this," I replied, "but you tried to kill all of us."

"Slowly and without you knowing it. It was more creative of me," he corrected me. "Besides, we're both dead now, so this isn't the time to hold a grudge against me. Now sit down and enjoy yourself."

Tomo was right about my enjoying the circus. It certainly is something I wish I would have seen as a younger child. The elephant was even more impressive than I had ever imagined it, but perhaps my mind was limited to imagining smaller things.

The children finished performing their acrobatics when the short, stout man Tomo had pointed out earlier stepped into the very center of the tent, and cleared his throat to sing. Some of the lights were dimmed so more focus was on him, and Tomo tapped my shoulder and whispered to me, "The real entertainment is when I come in."

He disappeared at that moment, but I didn't think much of it as the man began to sing. His voice was very deep and filled the entire tent as he let a few notes take their time coming out of his mouth. However, one note was rudely interrupted by the sound of a bird squawking. The performers were as surprised as I was, but none where as surprised as the singer, who immediately stopped and put his hands to his mouth. A few of the children giggled, but he shrugged it off and continued trying to sing. The squawking started again.

By this time, I figured out that it must have been Tomo's doing. As mean as it was, I wondered what he would do next- as I sooner found out. All of the lights wear shut off suddenly, and then a bright red light filled the middle of the tent where the man was standing. A deep voice that resembled his singing then began to speak.

"All you performers who have been graced with my presence," it said, "I bestow on you now the blessing of Suzaku." The performers began to ooh and aah. The light burned down to reveal a small, round, glowing man in only a loin cloth, but decorated in a chicken's beak and large red wings. He had an obviously displeased expression on his face as the glowing subsided.

"Squawk," he said.

Though it was blasphemy against my patron God, I couldn't help but laugh with the rest of performers. The singer-turned-Suzaku tried to yell something in defense, but all that came out as he flapped his wings around was more squawking. He finally left in frustration, the tent regained it's usual ambience, and I wiped away the tears of laughter.

Tomo reappeared behind me, looking very pleased with himself and pocketing a little shell. "What did you think?" he cackled.

"That was very, very clever," I complimented his work.

"Oh, I know I was clever," he toned down his silliness. "But that's not what I asked. What did you think of the circus?"

He seemed genuinely concerned about other children enjoying the circus that he held so dear. I wanted to say something that wasn't too cliché, but I did. "It made me very happy. I wish…" I trailed off as our surroundings became dark. "I wish I could have seen more."

He stayed silent for a moment, but finally closed his eyes and smiled. "You can," he put one of his fingernails to my forehead. "Go think of it."

I was a little surprised, but understood. "Thank you."

"You can take him back now, Nakago," he said, and at that instant, the general appeared from behind him.

"Are you ready to go now, Chiriko?" he turned and looked over his shoulder, signally me to follow. I nodded and stepped past Tomo to follow him to who knows where.

"Come back any time," was the last I heard from him as we pressed forward.


	4. Self Sacrifice

Did you all happen to know that I LOVE Soi? She's so awesome. But I can never do her justice, it seems. Anyway, in this chapter, there was a lot more of Nakago than in the previous ones… that might make some people happy.

I was still excited about the elephant and all the acrobats I saw, and couldn't wipe a little smile off my face as I continued to follow Nakago to some other unknown place.

"You still must be such a child," he broke our silence, "to still be so happy a trip to the circus."

"Enjoying it doesn't make me a child," I protested, my smile fleeting.

"It's still childish," he closed his eyes with a dominant air.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," I furrowed my eyebrows at him. "Weren't you able to enjoy things like that when you were young?"

He stopped, and didn't say anything for a moment.

"Nakago?" I asked.

"A child should watch what questions they're asking," he slid his thick blue eyes back at me. "Besides, Soi should be around here."

As I remembered, Soi was woman who tried to sink our boat right after we left Konan. As that thought crossed my thoughts, I noticed that we were back in Konan, standing on cliff which overlooked he capital. In fact, this was the place were I stargazed with Tasuki one time.

"This is where Tasuki killed Soi," he said, and I got an eerie chill, since he had just been on my mind. "You seem surprised," he commented.

"Not as surprised as I am," a smooth, feminine voice said. A woman stepped into view, but with her hair down, I couldn't recognize her as Soi right away. "You were coming to find me, weren't you, Nakago?" she purred seductively. I blushed and instinctively looked away, and she chuckled. "Is this a friend of yours?"

"You don't recognize him, Soi?" Nakago put a hand on my shoulder to turn me back around to face her.

She looked at me very carefully, before a look of surprise hit her face. "Isn't this boy one of the Suzaku?"

"I'm surprised it took you so long to notice," he scolded her, and she cowered her shoulders up. "Your senses seem to be dulled since you've died."

"I'm sorry, Nakago," her confident eyes fell.

"Take this boy into your care for a short while. I'll be back later," he said authoritatively. When he spoke, you listened, and I didn't bother saying anything for how closely I was listening.

"Into my care?" she looked even more surprised at me. "But he's so young…"

"Would that make any difference?" his eyes seemed to scowl at her. "And I didn't mean that. He's just a poor dead soul like ourselves, and I'm seeing to it that he meets each of his former enemies in a different way."

Her surprised look faded, and she smiled and nodded. With that, Nakago made his exit once again.

Once I was sure he was gone, I turned back to Soi. "He doesn't seem to treat you very well."

"I always knew he had a gentle side," she blushed, oblivious to what I was saying. "So, child, which one are you?"

"I'm Chiriko."

"I see. And Nakago said you were meeting all us? Am I the first?" she smiled. Her company seemed much more enjoyable than the other two started as.

"No, I've aleady met Suboshi and Tomo, today. As well as Amiboshi, but I don't know if that counts," I corrected her, and her content face turned to one of disgust.

"Oh. Him," she rolled her eyes. "You poor child. How is the old wind bag?"

"Tomo?" I assumed, since he was the oldest that I mentioned. "He seemed very happy when I met him. Bu besides that, he's just… dead."

She nodded. "Isn't that familiar? Oh well, a timely death is something we all can stand to be thankful for in one way or another."

"Be thankful for our deaths?" I raised me voice. "You say that as you're visiting your own death site, like a lonely ghost!"

"It can be a place for good or bad memories, Chichiri," she put a finger to my mouth.

"Chiriko."

"Chiriko, yes. Sorry, I always did get a lot of them mixed up," she removed her finger. "Whatever your name, you still seem confused a little this."

I nodded. She seemed a little too welcome about her death.

"I'll put it this way," she tilted her head down thoughtfully. "Death is something we all face at some point. But when the time comes, would you want to die a slow, lonely, useless death in old, feeble age?"

"I might have preferred that," I scrunched up my face.

"Over what?" she looked straight at me. "An honorable death, surrounded by those you love?"

"Well," I looked down at my feet shyly.

"I couldn't have asked for a more perfect death," she looked fondly at the very edge of the cliff. "Nakago would have been killed had I not taken that blade for him."

I felt a little cynical, but wouldn't tell her that I would have preferred Nakago die there instead so a couple of my comrades could have lived. That many of us succumbed to much more intense forces than a single sword. But of course, I kept my mouth shut.

"The best part," she smiled very contently, "was that at that moment, he trembled, just for me."

This sounded even stranger to me until I tried to imagine Nakago trembling, and couldn't. It must have been even more of a powerful sight for her, if he always treated her the way he was earlier. Yet she seemed so happy to sacrifice herself for someone like him.

"Why him?" I asked. "Why would you give so much for someone like Nakago?"

"I wouldn't give myself up for someone _like_ Nakago," she corrected me with a more stern look. "It was Nakago, the man who saved my life and my spirit when I was a little older… no, how old are you? Perhaps the same age. Since then, he was my only reason to carry on."

"Your only reason?" my eyes widened. "But you're a warrior of Seiryuu! You didn't feel any loyalty to your Priestess?"

"An obligation, yes. But I hardly ever saw my own priestess, and Nakago took complete responsibility for her safety, so the next step was to protect him. I was very content with that position," she smiled deeply, "as well as certain _other_ ones."

I wasn't sure what she meant by that, but let her continue.

"But it's not like that meant anything from him," Soi sighed. "The most sincerity I ever saw from him was when he trembled for me as I died, and let all of his weakness show through. He really could have shared his pain with me on so many levels before, but it was all in that one, single moment."

That made things a little more clear for me, so I didn't bring up rebuttal. And in fact, I didn't intend to say anything else, until she spoke more directly to me. "I can tell you were surrounded by people you loved as you died. Were you able to see any deeper into them at that moment?"

Mitsukake and Tasuki, two of the most important people to me, came to mind. Mitsukake, when I dieing, looked as strong as he always did, and used his best words to console me. At the last moment, though, he finally showed me how much grief he felt, and how much my pain was hurting him. Tasuki, on the other hand, was streaming with tears the entire time, and didn't even bother trying to stay strong for me, with his usual bandit attitude. The fact that those tears were for me was painful, but I would have felt even more lonely as died if they were smiling to me the whole time.

"I guess I did," I hugged my knees and looked off into the distance, wondering where they were. It wasn't only them… everyone showed how deeply they cared for me when they said good bye.

Soi's facial expression was very soft, and very content. "I think that's because of how much you gave up for them. If you had died in any less of a heroic way, I don't think they would have revealed those sides of themselves quite as honestly. And that's why you should be thankful."

I nodded, but had a big knot in my throat as I reflected on how they all reacted that day. If not had that happened, and even if I died as a random casually at war, they probably wouldn't have opened themselves up so much. Perhaps Soi was right, and that was in return for how much I gave for them.

"I'm sorry," she slumped her shoulders. "It seemed as through Nakago wanted me to cheer you up, but I've just made you more depressed."

"That's alright, Soi," I forced a smile. "I helped appreciate a few things a little more. But I don't think I can be like you and be so thankful for my death."

"No, no, you're confused again, Chibiko," she perked up a little aggressively. "I'm not thankful for my death at all. I'd much rather be alive. I'm just thankful for how it occurred, and what great things happened because of it."

"I see," I said with relief that she wasn't a complete fool. "And it's _Chiriko_."

"Sorry again, Chiriko," she laughed. "Nakago says my senses have lost their touch, but I can feel that he's coming. He's probably taking you to meet someone else now."

"Already?" I looked around. "I don't see…"

"Now you should be able to sense him," she said, still fond of his life force. Sure enough, once I felt for it, that life force appeared, and soon became visible to us.

"I see you were waiting for me," he raised an eyebrow. "We should go now before you miss your chance to see Ashitare, Chiriko."

I nodded and went to his side, as Soi bid us off. Nakago looked back at her briefly, and questioned her, "You seem to be in an unusually good mood, Soi."

"So nice of you to notice," she eyed him with her eyes a flutter.

He shook it off and turned around, saying to me in a whisper, "Honestly. That woman is still so obsessive."

I wanted to say something in her defense, but knew it was futile, so continued to let him lead me off to meet the next warrior: Ashitare.


	5. Freedom

If you thought there was a lot more Nakago in the Soi chapter, what'll you see this! This is the first time I've ever really tried to get into Ashitare's character… and it's a scary, scary place. He always seemed to me a bit… mentally unstable? It was hard to write, but a lot of fun. Hey wow! I finally got a review on that Tasuki-oneshot! Now I'm giddy.

"You said I have to hurry," I asked Nakago, trailing behind him as usual, "Why? Is Ashitare going somewhere?"

"Not so much that. As a stranger, you just have to be careful with your timing with Ashitare."

"Timing?"

"Yes. Remember back to when you recovered the first Shinzaho in Hokan, if you will."

"That was right after Nuriko died," I thought back. That was right- Ashitare was responsible for Nuriko's death. And we didn't have the Shinzaho for long, because a wolf stole it out of Miaka's hands… that wolf… "That was Ashitare, wasn't it?"

"That's a good start. Now compare that mental image to Nuriko's wounds."

I shuttered to remember that day, and how mangled my fellow warrior's body was. There was a deep wound all the way through his torso, and evidence that he had been pushed against things. However, a wolf, even of that size, wasn't very likely to have been able to push him like that without leaving claw marks on his chest. Expanding on that, it's anatomy didn't lined up well with that fatal wound… that was something that had to have been made by a human.

"Ashitare isn't really a wolf?" I asked. "A shape shifter, then? But even so, I thought Nuriko killed him before he stole the Shinzaho."

"You're partly correct," he deciding to quit having me guess, since he motioned for me to hurry up. "There are two halves to Ashitare: the human, and the wolf. Nuriko only killed the human part. Therefore, the wolf part was all that was left to retrieve the Shinzaho."

I couldn't help but think of Nuriko instead of Ashitare at that moment. If that's true, then his death was in vain. Of course, that made me the first of the Suzaku warriors to successfully kill a Seiryuu warrior, but at what expense?

"I won't leave you with Ashitare for very long," Nakago hushed his voice. "Because now that he's died, both parts of him have collided, and he can't stay in one form for very long at a time. You're lucky that he's more human today."

Before I could say anything, a deep, scratchy voice boomed. "It smells so familiar… a Suzaku warrior… and Nakago!" A large figure leaped between the two of us, with his eyes plastered on Nakago. "Why have you come here?"

"Nice to see you again, too, Ashitare," he stepped away.

"Is this for me?" he spun his attention around to me, and I was startled by how inhuman his face was.

"You have no physical body left to feed, so don't eat him," Nakago half-scolded him. "I'll be back later to collect him."

"Collect him?" the hairy man gave him a questioning glance, but the general was already gone. He growled, "That man disgusts me. He thinks he can just leave me with such temptation? It's a shame neither of us are still alive, or I would exact my revenge…." he trailed off, but turned back to me with a look of intrigue. "It's a shame you're not alive, either. Young flesh is much tastier, but being a Suzaku warrior would make you even more succulent."

My previous fears about what Tomo would do to me were nothing compared to how I felt then. In fact, I would have much preferred that to this man threatening to eat me, even though there was nothing to eat. I instinctively turned around to run away, but his quick reflexes kicked in and he grabbed a handful of my garments.

"Where do you think you're going? Nakago didn't even tell me what I'm supposed to do to you. Not that he would ever tell me much anyway," he sneered, and his spiritual breath felt hot against my neck.

"You don't have to do anything to me!" I pleaded, and tried to wriggle free. "Nakago- Nakago was just taking me to meet all of the Seiryuu warriors! If you don't really care about that, I'll just be going now…"

"Oh is he?" he raised his low pitch in question, and began to toy with my clothes as he thought. "Why would Nakago do something like that for a child's ghost? Much less, one of our enemies? Did death change him for the better? Or has it just made him lose his mind?"

"Erm," I said hastefully, and tried to move the clothes he was tugging at away from my neck, where it was already making me feel strangled. "Maybe that's something to think about later."

"Gyah!" he looked down at what he was subconsciously holding. "I'm all tangled up!"

This did fair well for either of us, because he tried pulling his hands in different directions, only making the clothes pull tighter around my neck. "That's not going to get you out," I tried to raise my voice to get his attention, "it's like a finger trap. The more you struggle, the tighter it'll get."

"Curses! I knew Nakago would do something like tie me up again!"

"He… he didn't! You…" I trailed off, reminding myself he probably wasn't the brightest of warriors. "You're right. He did this to spite both of us. But if we work together, we can get revenge on him!"

"Work with one of my enemies? Lunacies! Why would I do that?" he pulled tighter, forcing me to gag, even though I didn't have a throat to tie up any more. "But then again, if it's to spite Nakago…"

"E--exactly!" I cried out, wondering how long I would stay conscious under such pressure. "Just… pull very slowly in opposite directions…outwards…" Ashitare seemed very accustomed to following directions, and began doing just that. "Gently… gently…"

I was interrupted by the sounds of my garments shredding. But at least we were both free.

"Phew," I smiled, rubbing my neck with relief. "Are you alright?"

The wolf man was very silent for a moment as he held the shreds in his hands. "Is this… liberation?"

"Well, it's a bit of a strong word, but yes," I responded, though I found the question fairly strange. "So, if you'll excuse me, I'll be leaving now…"

"You can't get off this mountain," he snarled, and I suddenly became aware of my surroundings. Everything was white, and snow was blowing heavily. "My grudge against Nakago has trapped me here, and only someone with a life force as strong as his can pass in or out of it."

"Then what am I doing here?" my eyes widened.

"He took you here. Now you have to wait for someone to take you out," he glared at me, and I was startled again by how blazing his eyes were in contrast to everything else going on. I had certainly never seen human eyes likes that. "You should at least be thankful that you can leave! That you have tasted what they call liberation!"

I couldn't respond. I became more aware that this place was filled by his hatred, and that he couldn't put it behind him at all.

"Nakago said…" his hairs stood on edge. "Nakago said he would liberate me from those who chained me and jeered at me all of my life. He did that, all right… but only gave me new chains! He chained me down… and gave me new scars everyday with his whip!" he turned around and motioned to the long stretches of injured skin on his back. "He made me even less human!"

The mountain seemed to shake with his anger, and his spiritual body pulsed, threatening to change back into a more primitive form. "I can… I can never be liberated! Never!"

"A…Ashitare!" I yelled as loud as I could. "Ashitare! Calm… calm down! Please!" my desperate shouts continued. At all costs, I didn't want to see this wolf form Nakago seemed so apprehensive about. "Ashitare… Nakago may have enslaved you before… but you're the one enslaving yourself here!"

He focused back on me, as he paused, his fur still floating up and down with the movement of his life force. It was at that moment that I regretted opening my mouth and prepared to die a second death.

As expected, he took me as something to focus his anger on, and lunged. To my surprise, he yelled in pain as the sound of a whip echoed through my ears. Nakago was standing in between us, with his whip wrapped tightly around the wolf man's arm.

"Ashitare, that's enough," he said calmly. "Stand up, Chiriko. We're leaving now."

I did as I was told, as the whip released it's grip. He cowered to nurse his wound, glaring at the general. "You…"

"Just as the boy said, it's your own fault you let yourself stoop down to this, not mine," he cemented my previous comments as he ushered me away. The surroundings faded, with the sound of Ashitare's screams of vengeance.

"Thank you, Nakago," I said, trying to calm myself down.

"I should be thanking you, for saying something in my defense, of all people," he smiled, somewhat amused. "Especially after claiming that I was conspiring against you still."

"What?" I asked, before recalling what I had said earlier to Ashitare. "Then you were there the entire time?"

"Of course. I know what kind of mental condition that man is in. Only a fool would have left you all alone with him."

"Oh," I trailed off. "Then you there the whole time while I was with the others, too?"

"No, but I stayed close by, expect while I was speaking with Tomo beforehand. However, I do intend to leave you completely alone with the next warrior," he used a very serious tone, though it was hard to tell that it was different from his usual tone. I didn't think anything of it, and followed as usual, trying to chase Ashitare's entrapment out of my mind. I was very fortunate to be free of such petty attachment.

* * *

Wow, I was tempted to end this with a poem by Uesugi Kenshin, but there's no way Chiriko would know a 16th century samurai! (And no, not that Kenshin. A real one.) XD Anyway, I'm sure you all can guess who our tour guide Nakago is taking the little student to see next… oh, he'd probably kill me for comparing him to a tour guide. 


	6. Forgiveness

I didn't mean to make this chapter so sad, honestly. But please, dear readers, indulge in the wangstyness. Also, don't kill me, because there _will_ be a concluding chapter after this. That, and if you kill me, I'll haunt you with a vengeance…

What I thought would be just another day of lamenting my death was turning out to be very interesting. Nakago, seemingly the sole enemy of my former comrades and I, was taking me to formally meet each of the Seiryuu seven. I numbered them off in my head, trying to guess who would be next. Nakago, Suboshi, Amiboshi, Tomo, Soi, Ashitare…

Before I could finish that thought, I stopped in my tracks, and felt like I had to collapse as I felt an all too familiar life force. I had pushed the feeling of it far from my mind, and subconsciously convinced myself I would never feel it again. But of course, I was naive to keep thinking that as I met the other warriors. He was, after all, one of them.

"Not here, Nakago," I pleaded with wavering eyes. "Not him."

"If not him, this is worth nothing. Now stand up in your company," he scolded me with an unsympathetic tone. "Besides, you've already beaten him before."

"But that's the entire reason I'm here now!" I became filled with anger. "If it wasn't for him… I…"

"Nakago!" that voice said. I froze and my hands clenched my ears in a reflex. "And that _child_. The one who beat me."

"Miboshi," the general turned to him. "This boy is no longer our enemy. You can stand to be a little more civil."

"Civil?" his form became visible. "You're asking a lot by that, and bringing him here." He must have looked down at me by that point, but I refused to look back, cowering in a little ball behind Nakago. "Hhm. Still afraid of me? Good."

No. I couldn't let him over take me again. In pure stubbornness, I turned to look him in the eye, and was surprised to see him floating in my form. "You still…" I growled.

"This is the easiest form to take, in my current state," he glared back, not seeming to mind looking like me. "Now what is it you want here?"

"I don't want to be here at all," I looked around, unable to tell just where I was. "The most civil thing to do now would be for me to leave."

"Then why didn't you leave me the heck alone back then? Neither of us would be dead now had you done that in first place."

Furious, my fists shook at my sides. "If you could have left me alone in the first place… or even if you had just kept your own body so long ago, no, neither of us would be here yelling at each other now."

"Perhaps fate had a hand in things," Nakago invited himself back into the conversation. "It's no use trying to change the past."

"Nakago, you scumbag, take this child away," Miboshi shot his voice in a different direction. He seemed less intimidated by Nakago than any of the other warriors. He seemed even less intimidated by me, even now.

"Chiriko," Nakago said with his eyes closed, and I became attentive to him. "Miboshi wishes that you leave. Please spite him by staying here until I return."

Before I could object, he had disappeared. "Nakago!" I angerly called out.

Miboshi bitterly rolled his eyes and rested his chin on his hand. "That man has no tact, showing up and leaving whenever he pleases."

"It's even less tactful to enter other bodies as you please," I sent him a passionate glare.

"And it's also tactless for a child to speak to their elder like that!" he pointed the needled top at me. My shoulders tensed up as I saw it again, and I immediately remembered how sharp it was. He took notice, and looked back at it. "You know, this was meant to draw forth demons, not blood. If you wanted so much to end your life, couldn't you have found a more appropriate weapon?"

"I didn't want to end my life at all!" I shouted. "It's was _yours _I wanted to end!"

"I don't like possessing bodies, if that's what you're so mad about. But in order to protect my priestess, I had no other choice."

"Then you can't be mad at me for killing us. I was only protecting my friends," I worked hard to sound confident.

"I'm not mad at you for killing us. Once you loose your own body, death isn't much different from just using another body. You should be mad at yourself for that one."

I wished he hadn't put all the weight of my death back on my shoulders. "Then what are you so mad at me for?"

"For defeating me," his eyes were fired up. "Every other body I possessed, child or adult, simply succumbed to me. You _had _to be the special one, even without the help of Suzaku's mark on your foot. Even worse, it seemed so easy for you."

"Easy?" I stepped backwards. "If fighting you had been easy, I would have taken you down in some other way… and who can say that I defeated you, when ultimately I died because of it."

"What difference does death make?" Miboshi gave me a very dignified glance. "Even in your last, weakest moments, you held me at bay. That's very commendable."

"I don't care if it was commendable. I'd rather be alive than commendable."

He shook his head with a sigh. "If you had just stayed out of my way, you _would _still be alive."

I thought back to how 'alive' I was when Miboshi had complete control over my body. At first, it was like all of my senses were dulled, and I had no sense of where I was. I didn't feel concerned about anything in such a dull state, until I heard Miaka and all of my friends calling me back. I slowly started regaining consciousness, but only to start drowning in his life force.

"Like you said before," I said quietly. "Once you loose your own body, you're not really alive anymore."

Perhaps, somewhat like Soi said, I should be thankful for my death. It set me free… free, except for the grudge I was still holding towards Miboshi. No one was making me hold it, but it was still so hard to let go of.

"This has gotten silly," he interrupted my thoughts. "You're not some super child who squashed me like a bug. You just happened to take me by surprise."

I looked back at him curiously, unsure what he was getting at.

"Besides, my ultimate destiny was to make sure my priestess summoned Seiryuu. My dieing efforts ensured that, and I no longer had any obligation to her, Seiryuu, or my fellow warriors. It was that obligation- no, more of an obession- that made me cling to so many bodies. If anything, I should thank you for making me take death over more useless bodies."

I certainly was surprised, but in my stubbornness, looked away with a scowl. "I don't think I can accept your thanks."

"I wasn't exactly offering it," he clarified, with a raised eyebrows. "What a brat you are. Go ahead and continue dwelling on your misfortune, while I go experience the afterlife like it's meant to be experienced."

My scowl quickly ran away he said those words. Really, the only thing keeping me from finding peace was my anger. Anger about having to cut my life short, before I could attain so many of my dreams. Miboshi was just a face to put that anger on. Too bad he currently was using _my_ face.

"You're right," I swallowed my pride.

He gave me a very surprised look. "Pardon?"

"You're right!" I yelled, but then took a deep breath. "You're right. What I'm doing is silly. I'm letting… no, I'm making you keep me from being happy."

Miboshi continued to look very surprised. "So what you're saying is…?"

"I can't stay mad at you anymore," I said with a weak smile. "The best thing for me to do is forgive you for everything you did to me and my comrades."

He smiled, as if proud of himself. "Believe me, I did more to your comrades than to you. All I did was borrow your body, and I didn't harm a hair on your head."

"Please don't make this harder than it already is!" I pleaded, before my voice started wavering in desperation. "Will you accept my forgiveness or not?"

He closed his eyes, very content with the sound of that. "I accept. A reconciliation will do us both good." At that moment we were relieved of our grudges, his appearance changed from mine to that of a young man. It didn't take me long to figure out that was his true form from when he left his own body in the first place.

Miboshi turned around to float away, and offered a final comment. "It's also commendable that you could forgive me so quickly, and finally release me of that form. My only hope for you now…" he trailed off, as if a little sad, "…is that you can someday forgive yourself."

With that said, he was gone. I sunk back to my knees, reflecting on the burden I thought I had lifted. My anger had left, but with it also went the barrier penning up my sadness. Now the only face I could put on my death was my own.

No one was around for miles. Even if I was surrounded by people, I still would have felt that intense loneliness. I collapsed face down on the ground, without the will to pick myself back up. I was now free to mourn for myself again, wailing shamelessly until Nakago would return.


	7. Moving On

It's a short chapter, I know. And the ending got kinda hokey… but what ending doesn't? After all, I didn't want it to end! And no, there will not be a sequel to the sequel. "Reincarnation Lessons" is not one I'll be writing. But the rest of you are welcome to it. XD

I remained a little heap of sad spirit on the ground, until Nakago finally returned. He nonchalantly walked over to me, and nudged my head with his foot. Feeling so overwhelmed by sadness, I didn't bother responding. He gave a sigh of annoyance, and easily picked me up by my hair.

"What is it now?" he asked sternly. "You have no reason to be feeling worse now than before you talked with Miboshi."

"But," I forced my eyes open to meet his, even though they were clouded with leftover tears. "Without my anger towards him, I have nothing left to keep me going… nothing to…"

"And?"

"It's really… all my fault!" I hiccupped on a few tears. "Those lasts wound… I gave them to myself. I shouldn't have taken my life. It was all over before it even started!"

"And now you're left to cry about it?" Nakago let his grip loose, and I fell back to the ground with a thud. "Your friends have done enough of that for you. Tears do nothing."

But my useless, hysterical tears wouldn't stop. "That won't change anything now! Not after… not after--"

Apparently, frustrated with my crying fit, the blonde man back handed my cheek, and set me soaring a few feet away. Even as spirits, we are able to feel pain. The shock made me stop crying, and I lifted my hand to my cheek. If I had any blood to spare, surely it would have been bleeding.

He stepped over to wear I wound up, and kneeled down to see me eye to eye. "Are you finished?"

I sniffled, and regained my composure.

"Of course your friend's tears won't change anything," he continued. "But neither will yours. Tears are useless, but not meaningless. So don't waste them."

I took a few more deep breaths before replying. "But what am I supposed to now?"

"That's not for me to decide for you," he smiled his usual higher-than-thou smile. "What _are _you supposed to do now?"

I shook my head in uncertainty. He rolled his eyes a bit, and decided to help fill in the answer. "Consider what I've done for you today. If I were alive, would I have gone out of my way to help a little lost boy?"

My puzzled look pushed him to continue. "There's an expression, 'live and let live'. It doesn't apply so much to dead warriors, but it means that things shouldn't bother much when you can't change them. Our fates have been sealed, and there's no way for us to go back and relive our lives. So get over it."

"Then, Nakago," I asked quietly. "Does that mean you're content with your death now? Nothing from your life bothers you now? You aren't even mad at Tamahome for killing you?"

"Hmph. I might be a little upset that he saw more of m life than what was good for it. But over all, yes. I accomplished as much justice as I needed to in my final days, and then some. Perhaps I did get a little carried away with myself."

"By that, you mean you regret some of your decisions?"

"No. But I received what was bound to come to me. The life, be it in our spiritual or physical bodies, has a system of checks and balances. You wrong those who wrong you. And to those that you wrong, you atone. Is this making any more sense to you now?"

I paused, piecing together what he had said. If wrongs are either met with more wrongs or atonement, then perhaps everything he was doing for me was in return for everything he had done against my friends before? I decided not to question that as I nodded that I understood.

"Tears won't bring justice. Only action can," Nakago helped me up.

"But how does this apply to me? I've forgiven Miboshi now, and I've never really wronged anyone else…"

"Weren't you just saying otherwise?" he seemed annoyed again. "You owe it to yourself to move on.

My eyes widened as I understood what he was getting at. Instead of staying depressed over what I had done to end my life, I needed to work at fulfilling everything I didn't do in my time. It wasn't too late to still become a stronger person by spirit, even if by nothing else. I smiled widely, with a new found hope. "Thank you, Nakago."

"Go satisfy the wounds you gave yourself in the way you see fit," he turned around as he bid farewell. The general disappeared a final time, and I found myself back in the Sairo temple.

Not letting the bloodstained rubble remind me of such painful sadness, I said a final prayer for the sake of my own soul, calling to mind everything my former enemies had taught me.

That evening, I returned to Mt. Taikyoku very late, where Nuriko and Mitsukake were waiting.

"You sure were out late," Nuriko smiled. "We expect it from His Majesty, but it was a surprise from you."

"He's not a little boy with a curfew anymore, Nuriko," Mitsukake laughed, but then looked back at me as I tried to laugh with him. "Your eyes look puffy, Chiriko. Are you alright?"

"Alright?" I laughed more. "I'm dead!"

Nuriko raised his eyebrows. "You say that, even for having shredded clothing and a big bruise on your cheek."

"Just a rough day in the after life," Taiitsukun suddenly appeared before us. "It makes me thankful that I'm immortal."

Even now, I'm still sad. But I can't let that sadness keep me down. Not after everything that everyone's done for me. Just like the wrongs Nakago mentioned, my favors still have to be returned.

No, there will not be a sequel to the sequel. "Reincarnation Lessons" is not one I'll be writing. But the rest of you are welcome to it. XD Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. But what I'd love most is if you tell other people to come read this and the original, especially once it gets lost in the big mess of Chiriko-less fiction here.


End file.
